I have to admit that I have a pretty decent-sized shoe collection as well.  Not like Jenna Lyons (see video below where she discusses nearly 300 pair shoe collection) or Carrie Bradshaw, but probably fairly substantial for someone with a hard-to-find size.  I have walked out of stores disappointed and sometimes, have had sales people look at me funny when I ask for my size.  Is there really something crazy about having small feet?  Sure, you don’t usually expect someone my height to be “sized out” of shoes – I’m short, but not under five feet short.  I really only have a small handful of go-to stores and designers when I’m in North America.  Of course, I have a slightly easier time in Asia, where many brands start at 4 (rare) or 4 1/2 (more likely), though 5 is more typical.

That said, having small feet means that most of my shoes are on the boring side.  I’d love to have funky-looking shoes like the ones found at J.Crew (though I have to admit that some are a bit “out there” and too matchy-matchy to their current clothing collection), but far too frequently, I’m sized out. Even if shoes are available in a 5, it is often a bit loose – not just a little bit too big, but my-feet-are-slipping-out big (insoles aren’t helping).  More recently, I came across a pair of classic, but brightly coloured sandals from Canadian designer, Philip Sparks.  The heel wasn’t too high and it was conservative looking, yet stylish.  I went to the designer’s website, hoping to see that my size was available.  Sadly, it was not.  Smallest was a 6/36.  In fact, they don’t even carry shoes smaller than a 6/36.

A pretty shoe from Philip Sparks that does starts at size 6/36

I realize that I’m in a minority, but it would be nice if there was more selection.  While things are getting better – there are at least two online shops (The Odd Slipper and Emyloo Shoes) that cater to smaller feet (as tiny as size 3 US) – selection still tends to be a bit on the more conservative, office-friendly side (even when Nordstrom has its “extended size” event, which I saw when I was at a Nordstrom store in Las Vegas.  There was decent selection, but nowhere near what one would get when they wear, say, size 7).  It’s interesting how a larger person can complain about the lack of clothes and have tons of support from body image groups, but small-footed people don’t get the same kind of respect.  Oh well, I can always have a bag addiction, right?